Men Are Dragons
by The Light's Refrain
Summary: ONESHOT All Lysandre wanted was peace, and to never be like the rest of humankind. Fiery beasts that consumed all needlessly, that's all men were in the end. But paradise is already poisoned by the thing he despises above all...


_Hi there! This was originally a drabble in a drabble tag. I liked the core idea, but I didn't like the drabble itself much. So, for Flaming Platinum's birthday, as well as for the Fire Emblem Challenge on the Pokemon Fanfiction Challenges forum (don't worry, no FE knowledge needed, more on that later) here is the much-improved version that is actually worth posting!_

**_Disclaimer: If I owned Pokemon, I'd have all the villainous leaders as personal servants :P. But I don't, so their dignity remains (somewhat) intact._**

Men Are Dragons

"_Your conscience is a little triangle in your heart. It acts like a pinwheel. When you're good it does not rotate. When you're bad, it turns around and the corners hurt a lot. If you keep on being bad, the corners wear off, and when the little triangle spins around it doesn't hurt anymore." - Anonymous_

People are imperfect.

Lysandre has always known that. For years he has tried to rectify this unfortunate truth, through speeches, through acts, through money, through endless self-sacrifice. A little respect for his struggle was all he ever wanted. A little perfection, even a slight sign of change. But no, man remains unchanged, swarming and defiling with their petty desires and slaughters. And so, through trial after rending trial, Lysandre has finally accepted the despairing truth.

Men are dragons.

They claim to be civilized and dignified. But at the slightest scent of weakness or treasure, they transform into their true forms to burn and devour the weaker. Then they revert to their innocent-looking forms, claiming to be victims, or saviors. They pay no attention to the baleful smoke that still clings to their smiles, or the blood that decorates their feet.

But Lysandre does, because he is not like them. He sees all the thinly-veiled sin, the burnt remains of travesty, the stolen blood and lives. How he had tried to ignore it. How he tried to convert it all into a wonderful thing, to prove that mankind was a worthy existence. And how he was nothing but a spray bottle to a firestorm, a single sword against a rain of spears.

And Pokemon! The poor beings! Alone, Pokemon fight, but only for survival. With humans, they fight for sport. A lot of them _gladly_ fight for sport, as they become more attached to the creature called man. And when they reach Mega Evolution, their viciousness become unnatural, dragon like, _humanlike_. Not even their beloved Trainers can lay a hand them in this state. And this is considered the peak of love and connection between Pokemon and humans?

No, this only shows what a corrupting force humans are. Now, not even the Pokemon can be saved, The wretched beasts are too chained to man, even the wild ones, even the legendaries. They are tools for more destruction, who have learned to revel in the misery they cause.

War. Greed. Pain. Despair. With a body and soul caged by scars, all Lysandre wants is peace.

IIIIII

"I will give you plenty," Lysandre says to the members of Team Flare, who stare upon him rapt. "For when there are less people, there will be more wealth and joy for those who remain. The chosen ones." He listens to them roar like the beasts they are.

The fools. They failed to see that their shaman now wields dark magic instead of white, that his heart has changed as well as his robes. The world would be purified, but not for their sakes.

The plan unfolds perfectly. The ultimate weapon is found. The legendary Pokemon is found in its dormant state, the perfect power source. The ingredients are gathered on the backs of wastrels. The money is siphoned away from the fools. Children come to stop him, but they are no match. The weapon is unleashed. Kalos roars in agony, but only for an instant.

IIIIII

There is silence outside, both people and Pokemon hushed eternally, yet Kalos still stands beautiful. Lysandre goes out alone to observe the quiescence.

_I'd go through all this pain, _he thought_. Just to..._

He pauses for just a moment, before he squeezes the button in his hand. The base full of fools explodes.

He sighs, as the fires blaze and crackle gleefully behind his back. Finally, he is alone. Finally, he doesn't have to think about others. Finally, he and the world are perfect. There are no more dragons.

As the last man of Kalos, he strips himself of his robotic frame and runs into the pristine wilderness like a child. Smoke and blood cling to him like a second skin, but he is unaware of this. After all, there is no one else there to tell him.

_IIIIII_

_I always felt like Lysandre chose the most idiotic and worthless people b/c he planned out being the only survivor, b/c he hated humanity so much by that point. Of course he became what he hated, but he's too self-important to see that, or at least admit to it._

_So, where's the Fire Emblem in all this? For the challenge, I received three FE-related prompts and had to use them according to FE definitions. Here's what I got:_

_Sword- Self explanatory. Good against Axes, weak against Lances. Used by (unpromoted classes are all that's listed) Marth, Alm, Celica, Sigard, Seliph, Leif, Roy, Eliwood, Lyn, Eirika, Ike, Chrom, Avatar, Lucina, myrimidons, caveliers, and mercenaries._

_Manakete- Mysterious tribemen that turn into Dragons by sealing and unsealing their powers into Dragonstones. They equip Dragonstones (duh?) Notable characters (not including half- and quarter-breeds): Tiki (Archenea/Ylisse, Divine), Fae(Elibe, Divine), Myrrh(Magvel, Fire), Bantu (Archenea, Fire), Naga(Archenea/Jugdral/Ylisse, Divine), Jahn(Elibe, Fire), Medeus(Archenea, Earth), Forseti(Jugral, and we don't know for certain, but I'm guessing he's an Ice dragon because he's the Wind god), Aenir (Elibe, Ice), Nowi (Ylisse, Divine)._

_Shaman- The Dark magic class of the GBA series, the Light magic class of the Jugdral series, and in the Japanese version of FE10, Micaiah's final promotion. In the GBA series, they're stronger, but slower, than mages. The character Idoun/Idenn/Iodun/Idun/Eden/whatever's boss theme is also called 'Shaman in the Dark.'_

_Sword and Shaman appeared in the story itself, their use reflecting their FE definitions, while Manakete, though never directed mentioned, defines the theme of the story._

_So I hoped you enjoyed, especially Flame the birthday girl, and Glace, the creator of the FE challenge whose prompts helped to make this so much better :). Feel free to let me know what you think, and whether or not the prompts were well-used in the fic. Cya! _


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